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| Jim Clark Rally 2008 |
| RALLY NEWS No.2 - After SS2 - Wednesday @ 11:31:05 |
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RALLY NEWS NO.2 Charterhall Service/Saturday 10.30
UNOFFICIAL LEADERBOARD AFTER STAGE 2 – FOGO 1
1st (4) Tim McNulty/Eugene O'Donnell (Impreza WRC) 18.42.4
2nd (10) Guy Wilks/Phil Pugh (Lancer N) 18.53.9
3rd (14) Mark Higgins/Rory Kennedy (Impreza N) 18.57.6
4th (2) Eamonn Boland/Damien Morrissey (Impreza WRC) 19.00.9
5th (1) Gareth MacHale/Brian Murphy (Focus WRC) 19.25.2
6th (6) Aaron MacHale/Killian Duffy (Focus WRC) 19.29.4
7th (11) David Higgins/Ieuan Thomas (Impreza N) 19.40.3
8th (19) James Wozencroft/Chris Ridge (Impreza N) 20.08.0
9th (15) Stuart Jones/Andy Bull (MG S2000) 20.20.1
10th (18) John McGlaughlin/Crawford Henderson (Lancer N) 20.33.9
This Jim Clark Rally opened with the longest and toughest stage of the event, Abbey St Bathans, and as usual the stage brought it’s fair share of dramas. Phillip Morrow rolled his Lancer but managed to keep going, otherwise the main story was mostly of punctures and how slippy the roads were. Tim McNulty was fastest by 1s from Guy Wilks on that first stage and Tim commented. “We were a bit cautious there was another 10s in it anyway”. Guy Wilks reported no real problems. First on the road Gareth MacHale had a puncture on his Focus and said. “It is unusual to get it on a back wheel, but we were quite lucky, we were 8 or 9 miles into the 16 miler, after a square left, when it broke away over a grid at a farm. The tyre came off the rim at the end”. Tarmac Championship leader Eamonn Boland lost time with a spin at the same place where Morrow was later to crash. It was a downhill section just under 3 miles from the start past a house and Eamonn couldn’t believe how deceptively slippy it was. He had a reverse a little and spin the Subaru around damaging the front bumper in the process.
Third placed Mark Higgins said. “Overall it is going well, but on the first stage I turned the dial for the diffs one click too many and locked them on, but it worked OK. On the 2nd stage I asked for a 2m gap at the start because I was starting behind Phillip Morrow. I caught him before the stage finish and it certainly cost me a few seconds”. When Phillip brought his Lancer into service it certainly was quite a mess, but still driving straight although with no windscreen it must have been difficult for Phillip and he admitted that he was just going too fast where the accident happened. The car stepped out and flipped. Aaron MacHale found his Focus “stepping out” on the first stage. He said it was big slides from then on, but he “gave it a lash” anyway. Stuart Jones had a steady run, bedding himself into the MG S2000 on his first run with it on an asphalt rally.
John McGlaughlin found the set up of his car not quite right for the first stage but he still managed to make the top 10. Kevin Kelleher’s Lancer suffered a flat front right tyre 6 miles into the first stage, and he dropped well over a minute. Jonny Greer said. “Just didn’t get the flow going”. Robert Swann in the new Subaru N14 had 3 punctures in the first 2 stages and to add to his misery the jacking point broke, so he has lost 10 minutes. David Meredith had a good run on the first stage but then halfway through the 2nd, at a 40 into square right, he jagged the hand brake only to spin and lose about 10s. Brian O’Mahony in the Clio has had a good run despite many small problems, including a 4th gear spin at the same place where Morrow crashed. Then he had an intercom problem, then he caught up with Donegal man Michael McCollum in the Subaru which also cost a few seconds. He then had to back off slightly when a drive shaft on his Clio got damaged. Paul Curphey has pulled out of the rally, his Lancer having lost all power. Matt Beebe has also retired when a wheel fell off his MG.
Darren Gass’ Lancer lost a bit of time in the Fogo stage when he ran over a rock and punctured 2 tyres. Alastair Fisher has rolled his Fiesta out of the event on stage 1 following a rear wheel puncture. Whereas Curphey and Beebe are going to enter the Super Rally on Sunday, it is back to Ballinamallard for Fisher to get the Fiesta repaired at Gerry McGarrity’s workshop in preparation for Donegal Rally.
More news later: BRIAN & LIZ PATTERSON www.rallynews.net
*For SMS results text RALLY ITC to 60066 (UK): Or 53030 (Irl.): Text RALLY ITC OFF to stop. Cost 25p/30c. Provided by stagetimes.com
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